K: Financial and Insurance Services

Cbus union payments in the spotlight

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 13 & 19 : 4-Dec-24

Deloitte has made 26 recommendations following its independent review of payments made by construction industry superannuation fund Cbus to the CFMEU. A spokesman for Cbus has indicated that it will accept ‘in principle’ all of the recommendations in Deloitte’s report, and it will work with the accounting firm to develop an action plan to implement each of the recommendations. Amongst other things, Deloitte concluded that Cbus lacked appropriate procedures to ensure that payments to the union were in accordance with its requirement to act in the best financial interest of members.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY AND MARITIME EMPLOYEES UNION, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED

ASX 200 tops 8500 on Santa rally

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Original article by Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 4-Dec-24

Tribeca Investment Partners portfolio manager Jun Bei Liu says the Black Friday sales should boost investor sentiment in the lead-up to Christmas. Liu notes that the S&P/ASX 200 consumer discretionary index gained seven per cent in November; it also rose by 1.2 per cent on Tuesday, contributing to the S&P/ASX 200’s rise above the 8,500-point level for the first time. Andrew Mitchell from Ophir Asset Management says Donald Trump’s presidential election win has prompted renewed optimism among investors in the US and Australia.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY INDEX, TRIBECA INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD, OPHIR ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Aussie to drop materially in 2025, CBA warns

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 4-Dec-24

The Commonwealth Bank is bearish about the outlook for the Australian dollar in 2025, amid fears of a trade war when US president-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House. The currency has fallen by 7.3 per cent since its most recent peak in September; it was fetching $US0.6470 on Tuesday, having reached a low of $US0.6432 last week. The Commonwealth Bank now expects the currency to fall to $US0.61 by September, but head of international equities Joseph Capurso says it could fall much further and faster if the trade war is more disruptive than anticipated.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

WiseTech helps Aussie tech beat Nasdaq

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Original article by Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 3-Dec-24

The S&P/ASX 200 Techology Index had gained 56.4 per cent so far in 2024. The index has outperformed the Australian sharemarket’s other 11 industry groups and the technology-focused NASDAQ-100 in the US, which has gained 24.4 per cent. WiseTech Global, Life360, Xero and Technology One are amongst the ASX-listed technology stocks that have rallied in 2024. Tim Riordan from Blackwattle Investment Partners says factors such as the strong financial metrics of tech stocks has bolstered investor support for the sector. He adds that concerns about the outlook for resources stocks has also prompted investors to favour the tech sector.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 TECHNOLOGY INDEX, NASDAQ, WISETECH GLOBAL LIMITED – ASX WTC, LIFE360 INCORPORATED – ASX 360, XERO LIMITED – ASX XRO, TECHNOLOGY ONE LIMITED – ASX TNE, BLACKWATTLE INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD

Risk of mortgage stress eases for fourth straight month – the lowest for over 18 months since February 2023

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 27-Nov-24

New research from Roy Morgan shows that 1,487,000 mortgage holders (26.2%) were ‘At Risk’ of ‘mortgage stress’ in October 2024. This is down 2.1% points since September, and 4.1% lower than the June figures prior to the Stage 3 tax cuts that increased household income for Australians. Modelling by Roy Morgan shows that the number of mortgages ‘At Risk’ will fall by 12,000 in December to 1,475,000 (25.9% of mortgage holders) if the Reserve Bank drops interest rates by 0.25% to 4.10% at its last board meeting for the year. The number of Australians ‘At Risk’ of mortgage stress has increased by 680,000 since May 2022 when the RBA began a cycle of interest rate increase. Meanwhile, the number of mortgage holders considered to be ‘Extremely At Risk’ of mortgage stress is now numbered at 928,000 (16.7% of mortgage holders), which is significantly above the long-term average over the last 10 years of 14.6%. These are the latest findings from Roy Morgan’s Single Source Survey, based on in-depth interviews conducted with over 60,000 Australians each year, including over 10,000 owner-occupied mortgage-holders.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ had early warning of probe

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Original article by David Ross
The Australian – Page: 13 & 19 : 27-Nov-24

The ANZ Bank is continuing to attract scrutiny over its role in a $14 billion government bond placement in April 2023. The bank formally informed shareholders in mid-May 2024 that it is being investigated by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission with regard to the bond placement. ASIC had served ANZ with a formal notice of investigation in February, but sources have indicated that the bank’s senior management had been aware of the regulator’s interest in the bond deal in August 2023, when it requested access to documents concerning ANZ’s role in the transaction.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION

Australia warned it is lagging behind on cryptocurrency regulation

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Original article by Rhiann Whitson
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 26-Nov-24

The Australian cryptocurrency sector contends it is high time that the sector was properly regulated by means of legislation, with both businesses and consumers let down by a lack of regulation. The lack of legislation means that the Australian Securities Investment Commission is forced to take action case by case, with ASIC taking a number of enforcement actions against cryptobusinesses, claiming they have breached existing laws such as the Corporations Act. ASIC has noted that there are around 400 digital currency exchange changes registered with AUSTRAC, but that only about 40 crypto-related businesses are currently licensed with ASIC

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE

ASX tipped to test 8600 after shares surge

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 20-Nov-24

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 briefly rose above 8,400 points for the first time on Tuesday. The local bourse’s rally has prompted Morgan Stanley to upgrade its forecast for the ASX 200 at the end of 2025 to 8,500 points; its previous year-end target was 8,100. Tony Sycamore from IG Markets is more bullish, suggesting that the ASX 200 could potentially be trading at 8,600 points by the end of next year. However, JP Morgan recently forecast that the index will fall to 7,900 points by the end of 2025.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, IG MARKETS LIMITED, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

NAB sued over hardship silence

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Original article by David Ross
The Australian – Page: 15 & 19 : 19-Nov-24

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has launched legal action against the National Australia Bank, alleging it breached its requirements to fairly deal with customers suffering financial hardship. ASIC claims the NAB failed to respond to at least 345 customers seeking help from it over several years, including people suffering medical emergencies and people fleeing domestic violence. The case against the NAB follows a similar case against Westpac, and ASIC chair Joe Longo noted it was a "sign of the times", with tougher economic conditions resulting in the financial sector having to deal with a rise in hardship cases.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Young Australians cut back in cost-of-living crisis while older people shop more, data shows

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Original article by Catie McLeod
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 19-Nov-24

Analysis of the de-identified payments of about seven million Commonwealth Bank customers has revealed that 18- to 29-year-olds reduced their spending in the September quarter by 2% when compared to the same period in 2023. Spending by people aged between 30 and 39 was also down when compared to the same period in 2023, but spending by people aged 60 to 69 was up by 3.9% overall, while over-70s increased their spending by 7.7%. Wade Tubman from the CBA said the differences in spending between younger and older Australians was in contrast to the period immediately after the pandemic, when younger people were quicker to start going out and spent more than older people.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA